sa er. but that's welcome, i'm allen martin. four people face felony charges now accused of trying to take advantage of those folks caught in the san bruno disaster. but that's not the only thing rattling nerves in that city today. anne makovec in san bruno with the very latest developments for us.

anne. >> reporter: nerves are raw, allen. there was a press conference here at city hall today with a lot of warnings for people about criminals that may want to take advantage of the destruction. there's already been two people arrested, accused of trying to bilk the system by posing as phony victims. they are set to be in court this afternoon at 1:30. also warnings today about the potential of phony charities out there. so watch who you give money to. but the main concern for victims, phony contractors. the state put these signs up all over the blast zone neighborhood to warn people. any contractor you hire should have a license displayed on all advertising material and paperwork. you can see that at checkthelicensefirst.com. we have that on cbssanfrancisco.com. you can check there to see if they have workers' comp. insurance if they are required if they have any additional people working for them. otherwise, you the property owner could be sued if someone is injured at your home.

when the contractor comes to do the work, ask to see a pocket license. it looks like a credit card and check that with a picture id. the contractor state license board is going to set up stings in the meantime posing as home owners to catch any unscrupulous contractors they can. >> these really are the lowest of the lowest people. these people in san bruno are victims, and they're vulnerable. for the people who are willing to overlook all that and just try to be selfish and take advantage of them it brings out the biggest in human nature. >> reporter: today as allen briefly referred to a scare at portola valley americans valley elementary school. all 200 students from kindergarten to sixth grade were evacuated to parkside intermediate school after gas was smelled. the parents came to the school

to make sure their kids were safe. >> you can even hear it in my voice. i'm still scared. >> very worry, i'm scared. >> reporter: there is also a preschool on the site of the school. they evacuated to the playground and stayed on the property. but many parents came to take them home, as well. it was not a gas leak. it looks like some carbon dioxide built up in one of the school's appliances, potentially a heater. and it just needed to be aired out. one extra side note, the pg&e representative sent out to speak to us media at the school site, he actually didn't even know what kinds of gas lines may or may not be running under the school be it transmission or distribution lines. he said he would have to check that out. allen? >> but what happened at that school? kind of a good reminder everybody to else as the service gets back on for everybody. if they smell something, don't assume it's one thing. get it checked out. >> reporter: everybody took it

seriously from the school officials to the fire department to pg&e. but a lot of that from the impression i got was to ease fears, they knew anybody in the neighborhood would be concerned about something like this and they wanted to show they were able to take immediate definitive action. >> thank you, anne makovec in san bruno. the site of the explosion is still block off as a crime scene. yesterday police gave people who live there two hours to search through the ruins. they tried to find anything that could be salvaged. total damage now estimated at $38 million. all that debris is potentially toxic. it's a potential airborne health hazard. experts are trying to get the toxic ash removed before the rainy season begins. governor schwarzenegger got a firsthand look at the damage for the first time yesterday. he was on a trade mission in asia when that pipeline blew up last week. the day after the explosion, he asked president obama to

declare a federal major disaster for san mateo county. the governor says the president promised to help. a vigil is planned this evening for the mother and daughter who were killed in the san bruno disaster. that vigil is going to begin at 7:00 at saint cecilia catholic church in san francisco. 13-year-old janessa grieg went to school there. and her mother jacquelin often volunteered for the school activities. and residents of a care home in san bruno have a couple of good samaritans to thank for helping them to safety after the explosion happened. two men found several women in their 60s, 70s and 80s in wheelchairs. they had been left behind by two caregiverrers who ran off when they saw the fire. >> bobby went to the left, and i saw a lady there an elderly lady in a reclining chair with oxygen on and head stereos on with her back to the window. she had no idea what was going

on. so i took everything off of her and said come on, sweetheart, we have to go, we have to go. >> reporter: what do you say about that? >> i just want to thank all the people that save all the people in there, that's all, thank you. >> reporter: tell me about the people who are giving the care. why did they take off? can you tell us about that? >> no, sorry. >> reporter: can you just explain what kind of caregivers they are? >> the men drove the women to the hospital. none was seriously hurt. a container ship docked tow port of oakland after hitting a whale. a look from chopper 5. the whale was stuck on the bow of that ship after being hit. it's believed the whale may have already been dead before the ship hit it. the coast guard says that this type of thing has never happened before that they know of. >> a man is in the hospital this afternoon after being shot by police in concord about 2:30 this morning on clayton road and ashbury drive. police say they tried to stop the man because they believed he was a robbery suspect.

he ran off when they tried to talk to him. officers say the man pulled out a handgun and they shot him. the man is in his early 20s. he is expected to survive. $17,000 reward is being offered to find the gunman who shot and killed a berkeley man while he was walking home. he had just left a party celebrating his 35th birthday sunday morning when he and his fiancee were attacked by two robbers at adeline and emerson streets. the woman was punched and had minor injuries. police say the gunman got away in an older model two-tone suv. the standoff after a shooting at johns hopkins hospital ended an hour ago with the gunman killing himself as well as a relative. the gunman had barricaded himself in a room after shooting a doctor in the stomach. the doctor is expected to survive. the gunman was holed up for more than two hours before turning the gun on a relative and himself. hospital workers say the gunman was upset by the way the doctor who treated his mother, who was

a patient in the hospital. pope benedict xvi faced protestors after arriving in britain today. demonstrators angry over the catholic church's child sexual abuse scandal. the pope acknowledged the church did not act quickly enough to deal with priests who molested children. benedict's visit is historic. he is the first pope to go to britain on an official state visit. full speed ahead on a bay area freeway. next, a preview of the new express lane. and dogs banned for their own safety. the pets' predator on a bay area trail. we caught one on camera. curbing texting while driving. the app for that and how it works. well, for many of you, it is the summer that wasn't. well, believe it or not, this is the last weekend of summer. yeah, just a couple of days away. things are cooling off a little bit and also a chance of showers moving into the bay area. i have your seven-day forecast coming up. [ male announcer ] as the ceo of hp,

carly fiorina laid off 30,000 workers. when you're talking about massive layoffs, which we did... perhaps the work needs to be done somewhere else. [ male announcer ] fiorina shipped jobs to china. and while californians lost their jobs, fiorina tripled her salary. bought a million dollar yacht. and five corporate jets. i'm proud of what i did at hp. [ male announcer ] carly fiorina. outsourcing jobs. out for herself. [ barbara boxer ] i'm barbara boxer

and i approve this message.

palo alto is temporarily banning got some popular hiking trails in the bay area that are now off limits to dogs. palo alto's temporarily banning dogs from visiting trails along the western edge of the pearson arastradero preserve. several owners report a coyote bark, howling and nipping at their dogs. we caught this on camera in the area yesterday. one man says the coyote came right at him a few weeks ago but he was able to scare it away. >> and then it started coming towards me and i'm like whoa, this is not good. >> i like 'em and they have a right to be here. and they should be left alone

when they need their privacy. it's a young one. >> that's what rangers say they are doing. this is the second ban on dogs this year. no word how long it will last. since there have been no actual attacks, the rangers plan to leave the coyotes alone. countdown is on to the opening of the bay area's first- ever freeway express lane. kickoff celebration held this morning in fremont leading to monday morning's lane opening on interstate 680. basically, it's a carpool lane that solo drivers can use if they are willing to pay the fee. it's all done electronically so drivers will need fastrak transponders. >> anything we can do to get people to work sooner and out of their cars faster and get the students to school on time and get them off the roads for less pollution is very, very important. >> the southbound express lane will run from highway 84 south of pleasanton to highway 237 in milpitas. an effort to block texting while driving, there is an app for that. a southern california company developed a new smart phone

application called sms replier. once it's installed, the app can sense when your car is moving and will send out automatic response to anybody who sends you a text message so you don't have to. >> what happens, you get an inbound call or text and the phone is silent. and it auto replies back to the person that says, you're driving. >> the technology works with windows mobile, android, blackberry and pretty soon the iphone. it will cost $20, which is cheaper than a ticket and safer. it can provide the incredible power of healing. >> horse gave me a reason to get up every morning. >> the woman using horses to reach out to children with disabilities and how the animals also saved her. well, today's temperatures should be slightly warmer than yesterday. but after that it's all downhill. we'll take a look at today's afternoon highs and the next couple of days, the cooler

weather that's headed this way along with the chance of showers. ,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

yesterday i felt so bad, i went out and i got tracy to -- i got her to -- when you don't have heels on, she just doesn't want to be short.

>> oh. you know what? >> i found it over there in the corner. >> how many women would kill for an extra, you know what i mean? some days you want to be taller. >> some days you want it sunnier. >> is today one of those days? >> this morning. >> well, there is sunshine down in san jose. and those locations, they probably don't want any sunnier but it's pretty nice down the santa clara valley. now let's take a look at a place where you're probably begging for some sunshine. i'm sure you have no idea what this is. it is ocean beach socked in, clouds. we are expecting a few breaks of sunshine along the coastline, though, so don't give up completely. sunshine and low clouds. sunshine with mild temperatures inland up to the mid-80s, slightly warmer today. our visible satellite shows you where we're socked in along ocean beach and half moon bay, just essentially south of the golden gate here. and also, a few more clouds

riding up the coastline in marin county. we're eventually expecting a few breaks of sunshine, may not clear out completely but i wouldn't call it the entire day a loss. a few breaks of sunshine. so look at the temperatures. lower 60s in pacifica. lower 60s in daly city. yeah, a few breaks there. upper 70s in sunnyvale with plenty of sunshine. 78 degrees in san jose. 78 santa clara and fremont where we are expect loads of sunshine. mid-80s in antioch, brentwood, 80 dublin, 85 in pleasanton. 72 oakland, 69 berkeley. north bay cooler than average. upper 70s in napa, sonoma, petaluma. upper 70s in san rafael, san anselmo. 66 in sausalito. 66 degrees in san francisco. seven-day forecast, i don't know if you know this or not, put it's my job to tell you, this is the last weekend of

summer. fall officially arrives next wednesday. allen's laughing. >> i did not know that. >> because there was no summer. [ laughter ] >> right. >> saturday and sunday, cloudy, cooler, chance of a shower in the forecast. since we are on the cusp of the weekend we have a couple of events going on. this weekend the autumn moon festival in chinatown, 60s, showers possible. joe jonas is going to be running at the shoreline park in in mountain view. our very own juliette goodrich emcees the event. when joe jonas shows up, the women show up en masse. >> now it's a party. >> last time he showed up to run, women were running after him. >> well, that's the whole you know -- there you go. >> i know. it's to raise money for a good cause but it could be interesting to see how that goes down. >> could be a good weekend. story on monday. well, some east bay kids who have disabilities and illnesses are finding healing in something that medicine can't provide. sharon chin introduces this week's jefferson award winner,

a woman who quite frankly says horses saved her. >> reporter: 15-year-old emma mcgregor suffers from a terminal illness that attacks her central nervous system but the horses don't mind. are they like your friends? >> yeah. >> reporter: her mother says emma is slow to speak and walk, but quick to warm up to melanie buerke and her horses. >> when she is out here riding on them, she can have a chance to feel like any other little girl who wants to ride a horse. >> reporter: that's just how melanie wants kids to feel when they come to sonrise equestrian foundation, the nonprofit she founded in 2005. she uses horses to reach children with disabilities and serious illnesses. >> they are beautiful, strong, loyal. to be able to partner with an animal like that is beyond anything that you can do. >> reporter: melanie knows the healing power of horses. she says she has been rescued by horses twice in her life. as a child, melanie's parents split up. her mother's gift gave her relief.

>> she bought me a horse and i began to ride that horse, and that horse gave me a reason to get up every morning. >> reporter: then as an adult. >> my mom was dying of cancer. and again, another horse in my life pulled me through that, gave meet courage to carry on. just like that. she will go a little faster that way. >> reporter: through sonrise equestrian, the former death penalty court reporter rounds up several volunteers to offer free one on one riding lessons to nearly 40 children in alameda and contra costa counties. other sonrise programs teach kids to care for donated or rescued horses in need of rehabilitation. and every year, the nonprofit brings miniature horses. they visit some 300 children in hospice care. >> i want the kids who come to sonrise to be able to tap into the same joy, the same connection and commitment to the horse that i did. and to have something to live for. >> reporter: you can't tell 11- year-old jordan silas has adhd when he is riding. >> this is kind of my favorite

thing. but yeah, i like horses a lot. >> reporter: eric lee says melanie's program has helped his 12-year-old autistic daughter grow by leaps and gallops. >> there is more determination to finish tasks that translates into other things and better concentration in tasks like puzzles. >> i'm overjoyed to see the kids who come here and have built community and have gotten better. >> reporter: for providing children in crisis healing through horses this week's jefferson award in the bay area goes to melanie buerke. sharon chin, cbs 5. >> sonrise equestrian's biggest fundraiser is this saturday, september 18. if you would like more information, use the links that we have posted in our story about melanie at cbssanfrancisco.com. and then click watch and listen. and the new season of "survivor" under way now. the contestants from the bay area the self-proclaimed bad boy. [ female announcer ] at the jcpenney appreciation sale

save an extra 15% on all regular, sale, and clearance items. everything! no exclusions! plus if you use your jcpenney card, it's not an extra 15%, it's an extra 20% off. go to jcp.com to see everything on sale. jcpenney. but what were the results? fact: brown promised to improve schools. but the drop out rate increased 50%, and the state had to take over the schools.

fact: the city controller found employees paid for 22,000 hours... they never worked. fact: brown promised to cut crime. but murders doubled, making oakland the 4th most dangerous city in america. jerry brown. he just can't deliver the results california needs now. and driving all over town. i want one list. for one store. [ female announcer ] at safeway, you get it all. great quality and great prices. so you just need a safeway list. [ male announcer ] with thousands of everyday low prices you'll save all over the store. [ female announcer ] with club card specials like honey bunches of oats just 2 for $5 and safeway butter top breads 4 for $5. [ male announcer ] quality and low prices. so there's one stop for everything. [ female announcer ] at safeway, that's our promise. that's ingredients for life.

saving money. and like baseball people love their stats. i started bringing my lunch to work -- 50 bucks a week in my pocket. here's a good one: state farm insures 40 million drivers. more than geico and progressive combined. i saved because i'm accident-free. of course, with so many ways to save including discounts of up to 40%, having that many customers shouldn't be a surprise. so ask a neighbor about state farm, then call an agent at 1-800-state-farm or go online. welsh well, today's tip of well, today's tip of the day is going to be is seedless watermelon. it's september but watermelon sales are great and the prices are coming down because once the season is over, the demand is like diminishing. plenty out there. still plenty growing areas are producing seedless watermelons and regular watermelons which is great for us because of

supply and demand. when you buy your watermelons make sure they are very heavy for their size. that means they are packed with sugar. make sure right here there is no cracking on the rind whatsoever and turn it around. this is the part that's been laying on the ground from the vine. if it's yellow they picked it with the sugar content there. if it's white on the belly of the watermelon that means it wasn't there. and again, the heavier the better. when you bring them home, store them on the counter and sort unused portion in the refrigerator. after you cut it you will have juice all over your counter. my dad grew up in the produce business like i did, this is what he did. when he picked it out, he would knock on it. please god making sure this is a good watermelon. it always worked. i'm tony tantillo, your fresh grocer. and always remember to eat fresh and stay healthy. i'm buying this one. i blessed it. good-bye. coming up at 5:00 tonight a teenager sent to the hospital

overdosing not on drugs, vanilla extract. at 5:00 we have the warning for parents. and the season premier of "survivor" aired last night. one of contestants is from the bay area. marty lives in mill valley, wife and three kids. this season pits the older contestants against the younger ones. marty is 48. [ laughter ] >> puts him in the older group. [ laughter ] >> the tech executive compares himself to boss rob and russell, the bad boys. marty says he once rescued an injured climber from whitney 13,000 feet in the dead of winter. >> good luck. >> he is a bad boy. >> enjoy your afternoon. ,,,,

[ male announcer ] as the ceo of hp, carly fiorina laid off 30,000 workers. when you're talking about massive layoffs, which we did... perhaps the work needs to be done somewhere else. [ male announcer ] fiorina shipped jobs to china.

and while californians lost their jobs, fiorina tripled her salary. bought a million dollar yacht. and five corporate jets. i'm proud of what i did at hp. [ male announcer ] carly fiorina. outsourcing jobs. out for herself. [ barbara boxer ] i'm barbara boxer and i approve this message.